Monotype, linotype or something else?

[keebo52]

What is this? One letter per piece. Car key in photo is for size reference. Just bought 40 lbs and plenty more is available. What do you think?

[dancingbear41]

I have always regarded that stuff as linotype and used it accordingly. It is certainly get harder to find in my neck of the woods, snap up all you can.

Simon.

[MR45]

Were are you and what is the cost per Lb.

[Fritz D]

Linotype is a "line-of-type," not individual letters. What you have is either Monotype or Foundry type.

[RickinTN]

I've had two batches of what appears to be the same thing or at least very similar recently. The results were between 27 and 31% antimony, between 11 and 15% tin, and both had copper content of between 1.2 and 2.6%. It is some very good stuff to sweeten the pot and raise antimony and tin levels.
Get all you can if the price is reasonable,
Rick

[bangerjim]

Agree. Linotype is "type in a line" cast in sentences by an operator at a linotype machine from molten lead. Amazing machine! A ghost of the past.

That is mono or foundry type. Used in hand-set rows of type since Gutenberg invented it! I have hundreds and hundreds of pounds of this stuff in type drawers I use with my antique printing press. Mine will NEVER be melted down in my lifetime and I plan to leave it to a museum.

It is HARD. It had to withstand thousands and THOUSANDS of impacts by the printing platen over it's lifetime.

It is always in individual letters. Sometimes in blocks called "printer's ornaments".

This stuff is also very useful in hot transfer leaf printing! I have 4 of those machines that can print in any color foil on just about any surface.

I always hate to see this old stuff melted down for something as silly hardening lead for boolits, as it is the history of the printing industry. Get your lead alloys from Rotometals who make it up from the basics.

banger

[NewbieDave007]

Linotype is a "line-of-type," not individual letters. What you have is either Monotype or Foundry type.

^What he said.

[keebo52]

I live in Mississippi and the price is 50 cents a pound. How much should I buy at that price?

[mikeym1a]

What you show looks like the foundry type I lucked into. It's about 55%lead, 28%antimony, and the rest tin. It was designed to be hard, for many uses. Linotype was remelted after each use. Foundry type was used for headlines and the other bold type faces on the papers. If you have access to more, I would suggest you get it. Makes a great start for various alloys. Lucky you. Mine came from the small local paper that used to be in our town, and was family owned. Good find for you !

[NewbieDave007]

I live in Mississippi and the price is 50 cents a pound. How much should I buy at that price?

The going rate on here (that I've seen) has been around $2/#. I would buy all I could at your price. Nice score! I'm jealous.

[JWFilips]

From all I have handled .... I would say Monotype ( sold a bunch on Hee-bay over the years) Should come in at 9% tin, 19% antimony, 72% lead

[Boyscout]

My local printer sold me a bucket of the same and said it was foundry type (33 BHN). Schools used it a lot so they could use it over and over. 1 part Foundry/2 part Wheel weight=22 BHN approximate.

[Bzcraig]

I live in Mississippi and the price is 50 cents a pound. How much should I buy at that price?

Buy all of it!

[JASON4X4]

you should buy all of I then you can sell some off to pay for other items

[aya]

IT is not Linotype. Been working in the printing industry for 30+ years! i have used a lot of it. As new it came in paper wrappings, marked Monotype. Still have 1200 pounds, need some more soft to make it shootable though.

[spokeshave]

Igot about three hundred pounds of this at my local scrap yard two months ago. It cost me a dollar a pound and I was glad to get it for that. And I bought it for the silly purpose of hardening lead for boolits.
Jim

[Defcon-One]

I agree, what you have is most likely Monotype or Foundry type. The flat bottom makes me pretty sure that it is Monotype, but there is no guarantee. Either way, it is worth more than the price you stated to most of us here.

Buy all that you can at $0.50 per pound and sell what you do not need here on this site!

[David2011]

Foundry type is usually headline sized display type, often used for customizing grocery store flyers to the local store, making point of purchase display ads and other large type usage. Monotype is used for body text, stored in rows in the typesetting machine and is self-sorting (returns itself to its proper storage "nook" after use). It has a unique profile for each letter so the letter will follow its intended path within the machine. I can't guarantee it but due to the small size and varying notches on the type it looks like monotype. Mono is very hard and a nice additive to WW. It has enough tin that 1/2 lb to 20 lb ww makes a very good all-round boolit.

David

[dancingbear41]

I stand corrected. However, still buy all you can it will make great bullet alloys.

Simon.

[MaryB]

Foundry type, it has that little round notch giving it a foot. Monotype is smooth sided.